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The Great Japanese Earthquake and resulting Tsunami which occurred on March 11, 2011,  hit the north-east coast of Japan with a magnitude of 9.0 on the Richter scale and was one of the largest ocean-trench earthquakes ever recorded in Japan. The tsunami caused great devastation, including 15,861 casualties and 3018 missing persons reports, and, as of June 6, 2012, destroyed 388,783 homes.

As one might expect, great upheavals or tragic life occurrences have negative health consequences for the affected population. Having one's life turned upside down by a hurricane, tornado or any man-made tragedies such as the mass shootings in Aurora, Colorado or the Sikh Templ  in Wisconsin would cause increased stress levels, and according to most doctors and medical research, stress leads to many negative health consequences.

Cardiologist Dr. Hiroaki Shimokawa and colleagues from the Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine at Sendai, Japan, found that the weekly occurrence of five conditions - heart failure, acute coronary syndrome (including unstable angina and acute MI), stroke, cardio-pulmonary arrest and pneumonia - all increased sharply soon after the Japanese earthquake/tsunami occurred.   

"To the best of our knowledge," the doctor added, "this is the first report to describe the mid-term course of major cardiovascular events and pneumonia after a great earthquake in a large population. In particular, our findings provide the first evidence that the incidence of heart failure was markedly increased over a long period afterwards." Prevalence of pneumonia, a well-known risk factor for deteriorating heart failure, has also significantly increased.

The Tohoku University study also found - as reflected in self-monitoring measurements - that blood pressures have also elevated. However, transport disruption following the tsunami interrupted delivery of regular medications, such as antihypertensive or antithrombotic drugs, and this may have contributed to the increased cardiovascular events. There was also noted rise in the occurrences of ventricular tachyarrhythmia in patients with implantable cardiac defibrillators.

"Taken together," summarizes Dr Shimokawa, "we consider that discontinuation of drugs, activated sympathetic nervous system, rising blood pressure, and the increased occurrence of tachyarrhythmia and infections were all involved in the increased occurrence of cardiovascular events after the Great Earthquake of Japan."

In our ever-volatile world, we never seems very far away from either an act of natural or man-made events which will affect us immediately and leave lasting vestiges of emotional distress years after.  The key may be learning techniques for dealing with everyday stress and seeking help after a tragedy.